August 1, 2015, marked the beginning of our 8th month on the Pan American trail. Of those 8 months, 7 were spent living in our Westy in Mexico and Central America. Gregor and I had perfected the art of living and working in the van through ever-changing conditions in a predominantly Spanish-speaking world. We were loving nomadic life and we felt unstoppable.
All of that changed in August. (more…)
The Nicaraguan government opened a brand new all-in-one Immigration and Customs building at Peñas Blancas during the week of Aug 17, 2015. This article provides updated instructions on how to exit Nicaragua with a vehicle at this border crossing. The process to enter Costa Rica with a vehicle remains unchanged. (more…)
We didn’t really know much about El Salvador before we entered the country. In all our years of travelling, no one has ever told us to drop our sandwiches and head for El Salvador. Its neighbouring countries, Guatemala and Nicaragua, seem to get all the attention in travel blogs and guidebooks. Meanwhile, El Salvador is ignored like the middle child. (more…)
One of the things we love about Guatemala is the brightly coloured traditional dress of the Mayan women. About 40% of Guatemala’s population is Mayan, and there are 21 different Mayan groups in the country. People say you can identify a woman’s home town or village by the colours and patterns of her skirt (corte) and her traditional blouse (huipil). (more…)
Before we left Canada, Gregor announced that he wanted to take Spanish lessons in Guatemala and live with a Spanish-speaking host family. So we signed up for a two-week Spanish school and homestay program in San Pedro La Laguna, Lake Atitlan. (more…)